Description
Book SynopsisThe Church as Safe Haven conceptualizes the rise of Chinese Christianity as a new civilizational paradigm that encouraged individuals and communities to construct a sacred order for empowerment in modern China. Once Christianity enrooted itself in Chinese society as an indigenous religion, local congregations acquired much autonomy which enabled new religious institutions to take charge of community governance. Our contributors draw on newly-released archival sources, as well as on fieldwork observations investigating what Christianity meant to Chinese believers, how native actors built their churches and faith-based associations within the pre-existing social networks, and how they appropriated Christian resources in response to the fast-changing world. This book reconstructs the narratives of ordinary Christians, and places everyday faith experience at the center. Contributors are: Christie Chui-Shan Chow, Lydia Gerber, Melissa Inouye, Diana Junio, David Jong Hyuk Kang, Lars Peter Laamann, Joseph Tse-Hei Lee, George Kam Wah Mak, John R. Stanley, R. G. Tiedemann, Man-Shun Yeung.
Table of ContentsPreface: In Permanent Gratitude to R. G. Tiedemann List of Figures Notes on Contributors 1 Christianity and Community Governance in Modern China Joseph Tse-Hei Lee and Lars Peter Laamann part 1: Spirit / 靈: Filling a Cosmological Void 2 Torch-Bearers of Modernity? Western Missionaries, Demonism and Exorcism in Modern China (1860s–1930s) Lars Peter Laamann 3 Signs of Power: Christians’ Search for Certainty in Troubled Times (1906–1919) Melissa Wei-Tsing Inouye 4 Buddhist-Christian Encounters: Robert Morrison and the Haichuang Buddhist Temple in Nineteenth-Century Canton Man-Shun Yeung 5 Seeking Convergence: Richard Wilhelm, Wu Leichuan, and their Quest for a Shared Confucian-Christian Vision Lydia Gerber part 2 : Intellect / 智: Christianizing Chinese Hearts and Minds 6 Mission Education and New Opportunities: American Presbyterian Schools in Shandong Province John R. Stanley 7 Trained to Care: The Institutionalization of Nursing in Hong Kong (1887–1900) David Jong Hyuk Kang 8 Patriotic Cooperation: Why was the Church-Run Border Service Department Established in Wartime China? Diana Junio 9 Building a National Bible Society: The China Bible House and the Indigenization of Bible Work George Kam Wah Mak part 3: Body / 體: Christian Activism in Local Society 10 Faith and Charity: Christian Disaster Management in 1920s Chaozhou Joseph Tse-Hei Lee 11 Catholic Mission Stations in Northern China: Centres of Stability and Protection in Troubled Times Rolf Gerhard Tiedemann 12 Revive, Survive, and Divide: Rebuilding Seventh-Day Adventism in Wenzhou Christie Chui-Shan Chow Index
